He used to go on a Magical Mystery Tour before a show – but these days Paul McCartney says Let It Be to the booze because he started to forget his song words on stage.

The star’s backstage rider now consists of a bag of chocolate raisins and some cashew nuts. Very rock ’n’ roll...

Sir Paul used to enjoy wine and beer during his days with The Beatles and on the road with Wings in the Sixties and Seventies.

But now the 75-year-old Band on the Run singer waits until after a gig before he tucks into the vino.

Asked if he sinks any booze to calm his nerves prior to concerts, Sir Paul said: “No. I used to try that, particularly in the early days of Wings when we would tour. But it didn’t work – I would just forget the lyrics I didn’t know anyway.”

The former Beatle says he waits until after gigs to drink a glass of wine (Image: Liverpool Echo)

Macca said his bandmates enjoy a few glasses of red wine before shows, but he prefers a little snack. “I don’t eat or drink before I go on because I sort of like to feel light. Then afterwards I can get heavy and have a drink. Before I go on I don’t do that.

“But I do have little sort of snacky things in the dressing room that I might just grab, like chocolate covered raisins and equal amount of salted cashews.”

Macca’s rider is a world away from other major rock stars.

James Brown would request a deli tray with meats and cheeses, coffee, Gatorade, Champagne – Cristal or Dom Perignon – and an electric golf cart.

Britney Spears has McDonald’s cheeseburgers (without the bun), 100 figs and prunes, a fish-and-chip supper – and a framed photograph of the late Princess Diana.

The Prodigy ask for Crunchy Nut Cornflakes and a bottle of Dom Perignon. Eminem likes Bacardi, Hennessy cognac, two cases of soft drink Mountain Dew and a selection of Mexican treats from Taco Bell.

He decides to snack on nuts and raisins before going on stage (Image: Getty Images North America)

Kanye West demands brand new Versace towels – and the Stereophonics once asked for a bottom-shaped piñata filled with Cuban cigars and dark chocolate Cacique rum liqueurs, indoor fireworks and black gaffer tape. As you do.

Macca, who has admitted he battled booze issues after leaving The Beatles, opened up about his pre-gig routine during a chat ahead of his Australasia tour later this year.

He also said that a Scouse sense of humour was key to the Fab Four staying sane during their ­meteoric rise in the Sixties.

“I do think it was a big thing, because being from Liverpool you are naturally surrounded by a big sense of humour, always joshing,” he said.

“My dad would say the craziest things. So when the four of us got together we all knew that as a background.

“Because we spent so much time together the sense of humour really helped – just to stop you going mad.”

Despite being a star, Sir Paul proved he isn't too proud to use public transport (Image: SWNS.com)

He added: “I always say we were a great little band. And that for me is what’s precious about The Beatles. We were a great little band that expanded beyond all expansion.”

Macca also admitted that he was nervous working with Kanye West and Rihanna on FourFiveSeconds in 2015.

“I got a phone call and my manager said, ‘Kanye West would like to work with you.’ And I go, ‘Yeah, we’ll do it’. I was a little bit nervous at first, because I thought it could go horribly wrong.

"But I was intrigued to see what he was up to and how he did it. And it was a very intriguing process. You don’t write songs. You just talk and noodle a bit and you record it all on your phone.

“And then he goes away. And that’s basically his record. But it was great doing it because I don’t work like that.”

In 2015, Sir Paul revealed he had stopped smoking marijuana because he wanted to be a better role model to his grandkids. “The last time I smoked was a long time ago,” he said.